Microsoft Azure Stack is an extension of Azure – bringing the agility and innovation of cloud computing to your on-premises environment and enabling the only hybrid cloud that allows you to build and deploy hybrid apps anywhere. We bring together the best of the edge and cloud to deliver Azure services anywhere in your environment.

We’re excited to announce Azure Media Services now offers Google Widevine license delivery service in the cloud. Today, in order to deliver Digital Rights Management(DRM) protected content across full range of browsers and devices via HTML5 Encrypted Media Extensions (EME), you will need to support more than one DRM. For instance, IE 11 and Microsoft Edge implemented PlayReady Content Decryption Module (CDM) but Google Chrome implemented Widevine CDM. You may end up encrypt your videos multiple times for each technology. However, with Azure Media services, you now have an end-to-end solution allows you to encrypt your media files only once with ISO MPEG Common Encryption (CENC) and generate multiple DRM header such as Widevine and PlayReady to be streamed to multiple browsers.

Google Widevine License delivery

Google Widevine modular is Google’s DRM technology works on MPEG-DASH streaming with common encryption. Google Widevine Modular can be played on Android devices (4.3+), Chrome browser via Encrypted Media Extensions (EME) and Chromecast/Android TV. Azure Media Services now provides pay-as-you-go Widevine license delivery services. It is free at public preview and will be charged at $0.2/100 license when our service hits GA. Additionally, effective January 1 2016, PlayReady License Delivery will be reduced to $.20 per 100 licenses as well!

The below diagram shows how you can use Google Widevine license services with the rest of Azure Media Services workflow.

Steps involved when configuring an end-to-end multi-DRM DASH stream

Encode your media asset once into H.264 multiple bitrate MP4.

Azure Media Services will dynamically encrypt your content using Common encryption (CENC) and package it with PlayReady and/or Widevine license header based on your configuration.

Don’t want to code? Azure Explorer Tool just had a new update 3.33.0.0 to support Widevine license delivery configuration. Please refer to this guide for more information.

Configure Azure Media Player for your Widevine streams. Azure Media Player v1.4.0 supports playback of Azure Media Services content that is dynamically packaged with both PlayReady and Widevine DRM. To get started, check out the documentation, or see working samples for how to update the player for this configuration through JavaScript and directly through the DOM. You can also check out Azure Media Player demo page to see how multi-DRM working yourself!